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| Pregnancy Terms |
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Pregnancy terms starting with P
Get quick definitions of many of the most common pregnancy terms here! From fertility
treatment terminology to common pregnancy conditions to the stages of labor, find
out more about the hundreds of new words you will be hearing.
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Preconception
Category:
Conception and fertility
Before pregnancy has been achieved.
Prolapsed cord
Category:
High risk/Complications
When the umbilical cord slips through the cervix or into the vaginal canal. The cord may
actually stick out from the vagina, or the mother may just feel that there is something
there. The mother should get on her hands and knees to relieve pressure on the cord and call
911 for assistance and advice.
Previous preterm or small-for-gestational-age infant
Category:
General pregnancy
Previous birth of an infant prior to term (before 37 completed weeks of gestation) or of an
infant weighing less than the 10th percentile for gestational age using a standard
weight-for-age chart.
Perinatal
Category:
General pregnancy
Of or pertaining to the time during labor and birth, and immediately following delivery.
Perinatal monitoring system
Category:
Labor and birth
A perinatal monitoring system is a device used to show graphically the relationship between
maternal labor and the fetal heart rate by means of combining and coordinating uterine
contraction and fetal heart monitors with appropriate displays of the well-being of the
fetus during pregnancy, labor, and delivery.
Perinatologist
Category:
General pregnancy
An Obstetrician who has received further education in the area of high-risk pregnancies and
complications.
Pelvis
Category:
Mom's health
The lower portion of the trunk of the body, bounded anteriorly and laterally by the two
hipbones and posteriorly by the sacrum and coccyx.
Perineum
Category:
Labor and birth
The area between the vagina and the anus. The perineum is stretched during a vaginal
delivery, and may be cut if your caregiver performs an episiotomy.
Phenylketonuria
Category:
Baby's health
A genetic liver enzyme disorder that may be regulated by a careful diet. In the US, all
babies are screened for PKU at birth. Women with an inborn error of body chemistry called
phenylketonuria (PKU) also are at high risk of having a baby with a heart defect.
Pica
Category:
Category: Mom's health
Pica during pregnancy is a condition in which a woman craves and consumes substances with no
nutritional value. Affected women have cravings for non-food items such as ice, baking
soda/powder, laundry starch, clay, dirt, chalk and ashes. Pica is more common in African
American women. According to the Journal of the American Dietetic Association (1998;
98:293-296), pica practices are associated with significantly lower maternal hemoglobin
(iron) levels at delivery.
If you find you have such unusual cravings, tell your health practitioner and request a test
for anemia.
Placenta
Category:
General pregnancy
The special tissue that joins the mother to her fetus; it provides the fetus with oxygen,
water, and nutrients (food) from the mother's blood and secretes the hormones necessary for
successful pregnancy. Carbon dioxide and other wastes are passed back through the placenta.
These will be processed and excreted by the mother.
Placenta previa
Category:
High risk/Complications
Implantation of the placenta over or near the internal opening of the cervix.
Placental abruption
Category:
High risk/Complications
The premature separation of a normally implanted placenta from the uterus. Severity of this
condition varies.
Symptoms of placental abruption include bleeding, cramping, and abdominal/uterine
tenderness.
Polydactyly
Category:
Birth defects
An abnormality in which a person is born with more than the normal number of fingers or
toes.
Polyp
Category:
Mom's health
A protruding growth, from mucous membrane.
Position
Category:
Labor and birth
The baby's position is described in terms of four references: fetal station, lie, attitude
and presentation. The relationship of the presenting part to the pelvis is usually described
with three letters signifying the following:
L = Left; R = Right
O, S = Occipito, sacrum or other presenting part
A = Anterior (toward the front); P = Posterior (facing the back)
Posterior presentation
Category:
Labor and birth
Also called Occiput Posterior (OP) Position, a posterior presentation occurs when a baby
faces toward the mother's front instead of toward her back. Labors with a baby in a
posterior presentation tend to be more difficult than usual, because the baby's head does
not fit as well into the mother's pelvis nor does it properly fit against the cervix. The
baby also has to rotate farther to get into the position for birth And the hard bone in the
back of the baby's head presses into the mother's back, which may cause intense back pain
("back labor").
Postpartum depression
Category:
Postpartum
Some women - up to an estimated 30 percent - feel very depressed after the birth of a child.
This is known as postpartum depression, and it can develop immediately after birth or up to
four weeks afterward. It lasts anywhere from a couple weeks up to a year - the duration
depends on the factors involved in the depression (such as hormonal changes, physical
discomfort, problems with breastfeeding, an ill child, and lack of support) and the depth of
the despair. It can affect all mothers - not just first-timers.
Typical symptoms of postpartum depression, or PPD, include headaches, chest pain, insomnia,
anxiety, loss of appetite, feeling powerless or worthless, and little or no feelings of
bonding with the baby.
Pre-eclampsia
Category:
High risk/Complications
(Preeclampsia or Pre-eclampsia) High blood pressure during pregnancy is part of a
complicated condition that arises rather suddenly 5 to 10 percent of the time in the latter
half of pregnancy. The condition may also include protein in the urine and/or swelling of
the face, hands and feet. (Commonly referred to as pregnancy-induced hypertension [PIH].)
Precipitous labor
Category:
Labor and birth
A very quick labor and delivery, which lasts less than three hours from beginning to end.
Pregnancy test
Category:
General pregnancy
A blood or urine test that determines the level of the human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)
hormone. Elevated levels of this hormone are chemical evidence of a pregnancy.
Pregnancy, chemical
Category:
General pregnancy
Pregnancy documented by a blood or urine test that shows a rise in the level of the human
chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) hormone.
Pregnancy, clinical
Category:
General pregnancy
Pregnancy documented by the presence of a gestational sac on ultrasound.
Premature rupture of membranes
Category:
High risk/Complications
Frequently abbreviated as PROM, this means that the membranes (amniotic sac) has broken or
developed a hole at any time during pregnancy and more than 12 hours before the onset of
labor. Preterm PROM occurs when the membranes rupture before 36 weeks of pregnancy.
Presentation
Category:
Labor and birth
The part of the fetus that enters the birth canal first. Some presentations include
variations of cephalic (head), breech (bottom, legs or feet) or shoulder.
Preterm
Category:
High risk/Complications
Premature or pre-term labor is defined as labor occurring after 20 weeks and before 37
completed weeks of pregnancy. Estimates suggest that 6 percent to 10 percent of all births
in the United States occur between the 20th and the 37th week of pregnancy.
Previous infant 4,000+ grams
Category:
General pregnancy
The birthweight of a previous live-born child was over 4,000 grams (8 lbs 13 oz). Also
called macrosomia.
Primigravida
Category:
Mom's health
First-time pregnancy. (Latin term)
Progesterone
Category:
General pregnancy
One of the female sex hormones, which is produced by the ovary and placenta. Progesterone
prepares the lining of the uterus, for implantation of a fertilized egg, and helps maintain
the pregnancy. Low levels of progesterone may increase the risk of miscarriage.
Prolonged labor
Category:
Labor and birth
What is clinically defined as an "abnormally slow progress of labor," lasting more than 20
hours. There are many reasons why labor may not progress more quickly, and this does not
always signify a problem.
Protein
Category:
Pregnancy/Birth/Other
A large, complex molecule composed of amino acids. The sequence of the amino acids, and thus
the function of the protein, is determined by the sequence of the base pairs in the gene
that encodes it. Proteins are essential to the structure, function, and regulation of the
body. Examples are hormones, enzymes, and antibodies.
Proteinuria
Category:
High risk/Complications
Protein in the urine, this is often considered a warning sign of preeclampsia. Protein found
in the urine very early in pregnancy increases the risk of such adverse outcomes as giving
birth prematurely, having a child who is small for gestational age, or having an infant who
would need to be admitted to a newborn intensive care unit. (The New England Journal of
Medicine; 9/3/98)
Ptyalism
Category:
General pregnancy
Excessive salivation, a common early symptom of pregnancy.
Pubic bone
Category:
Mom's health
Also, know as the pubis, the "pubic bone" is the meeting of three other principal bones.
Puerperium
Category:
Postpartum
The postpartum recovery period; generally, the first 6 weeks after birth, during which time
the uterus returns to its non-pregnant size.
More definitions
Click on any of the letters below to read more:
A B
C D
E F
G H
I J
K L
M N
O P
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